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Summary: This report was prepared by the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood. Drafts of this report were reviewed by participating UN organizations, the World Bank and members of the steering committee and the report was revised in response to their comments.
The MENA regional consultation was designed as a highly interactive and participatory process that involved a diverse range of stakeholders including government entities with policy making and executive responsibilities in the child rights sector, regional and national civil society representatives, opinion leaders, activists and media professionals. A prominent feature of the process was the participation of children from 9 different countries from the region (Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Tunisia, Yemen, Qatar, Bahrain, Algeria, and Sudan) representing different socio economic, cultural and education backgrounds, both in the preparation process and the actual consultation. The overall regional preparatory process was coordinated by the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood which is the highest national body responsible for policy making, coordinating and follow-up of the child rights agenda in Egypt. Chaired by H.E. Ambassador Moushira Khattab, Secretary General of the NCCM, the steering committee of the consultation included representatives from a number of organisations. On the other hand, countries in the region established national committees on violence to facilitate dialogue to raise awareness and mobilize participation of stakeholders including children in the national preparatory process. The national committees are intended as follow up mechanisms to coordinate the commitment to the Cairo Declaration emanating from the consultation at the national level and support regional initiatives on violence.From October 2004 to May 2005, the regional steering committee held several meetings to discuss and finalize the agenda and arrangements for the consultation. The process was highly participatory and benefited from the diversity of experiences and insights that the various members brought. During their final meeting, the steering committee reached consensus that the regional consultation should be a springboard to a regional movement against all forms of violence using the media, established national committees on violence and voices of children to enhance the visibility of the topic and eliminate the sensitivity and silence on many forms of violence across the region. Violence in the region can be classified based on the setting where it takes place to 4 types: The regional desktop review presented an overview of the incidence and patterns of violence in each of these settings. The review was based on replies by the government to the questionnaire prepared by the UN secretariat for the study of Violence Against Children, concluding observations on the SP reports submitted to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, and a compilation of literature on violence in the region. Nevertheless, the lack of sufficient of data on unreported incidents of violence, such as school-based or home-based violence, violence in institutional settings or forms of violence that fall under cultural or traditional practices including, honor killings and FGM, still represented a challenge to a reliable assessment of the magnitude of the problem across the region. According to the review and discussions that took place at the regional consultation, legislations across the region lacked adequate enforcement to provide the necessary protection for children against violence. The review and subsequent presentations made at the consultation also revealed a number of legislative gaps that needed to be addressed in terms of ensuring the conformity of national legislations with the provisions of the Convention of the Rights of the Child. In terms of programs and policies, the outcome of the regional consultation highlighted a number of good practices in different countries. However the challenge remains in scaling up these initiatives at the national and regional levels to extend the protection umbrella to all children particularly disadvantaged groups. Finally, in terms of awareness, advocacy, customs and traditions, there was a clear consensus throughout the consultation process that much needs to be done in terms of clarifying that violence must not be used as a disciplinary measure of child upbringing. A strong emphasis was made on the need for monitoring tools and mechanisms in the various settings to allow for violence reporting, counseling and other types of support services that can ultimately reverse these negative practices.In terms of vulnerability of certain groups of children, the consultation revealed that children with disabilities, girls, working children, children in institutions and those living on streets were exposed to abuse and maltreatment and a higher risk of sexual exploitation and other forms of violence. There was a clear consensus in the consultation process that extensive efforts should be made toward the detection, reporting and criminalization of such forms of violence. Human resources, relevant experience and skills needed to deal effectively with managing, detecting and preventing the incidence of violence were cited as challenges across the region. the consultation revealed that children with disabilities, girls, working children, children in institutions and those living on streets were exposed to abuse and maltreatment and a higher risk of sexual exploitation and other forms of violence. There was a clear consensus in the consultation process that extensive efforts should be made toward the detection, reporting and criminalization of such forms of violence. Human resources, relevant experience and skills needed to deal effectively with managing, detecting and preventing the incidence of violence were cited as challenges across the region. The Voices of the Children were clear and loud to express that violence in whatever form will and can no longer be tolerated. Children expressed their appreciation for being an active constituency in the consultations and commended the platform as a first and welcome step to eliminate the practice. Children delegates spoke elaborately of weak enforcement mechanisms and the need to develop the appropriate child-sensitive measures that would support reporting of violence by children to the respective authorities. The voices of children stressed empowerment through knowledge and awareness-raising as a priority for children, families and caretakers in schools and institutions. Across the region, the societal reaction to violence against children -whether passive or that of acceptance- needs to be addressed through awareness raising and through the vital role of media channels. Children also focused on their roles in the implementation of some of the presented recommendations. were clear and loud to express that violence in whatever form will and can no longer be tolerated. Children expressed their appreciation for being an active constituency in the consultations and commended the platform as a first and welcome step to eliminate the practice. Children delegates spoke elaborately of weak enforcement mechanisms and the need to develop the appropriate child-sensitive measures that would support reporting of violence by children to the respective authorities. The voices of children stressed empowerment through knowledge and awareness-raising as a priority for children, families and caretakers in schools and institutions. Across the region, the societal reaction to violence against children -whether passive or that of acceptance- needs to be addressed through awareness raising and through the vital role of media channels. Children also focused on their roles in the implementation of some of the presented recommendations. Overall, the child-adult interaction was an outstanding feature of the consultation. Children participated in all sessions and were given both space and time to freely express their views. Reactions to the children's statements were very positive in terms of the level of support their viewpoints and recommendations received and the reflection of their insights and experiences in the final outputs of the consultations.The recommendations that evolved from the consultation focused on several principles, mainly: Mobilizing the public opinion against all forms of violence and abuse against children, including physical, sexual and psychological violence, that could affect their growth or their human rights, and calling for the protection of children from discrimination and all forms of violence. Providing studies and data on the types and the size of violence against children in all the different settings, and seeking to facilitate exchange of information among parties concerned at both national and regional levels; Developing an integrated model (s) for identifying and monitoring incidents of violence, and to set up unified indicators for accurately following up children's protection; Reviewing national laws to ensure conformity with the Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC), and tackling legal loopholes in conformity with an overall Rights' perspective and in the best interest of children; Raising children's awareness of their rights, and spreading the culture of peace and dialogue, with the aim of changing negative concepts and erroneous beliefs in children's upbringing and education, and settling disputes peacefully, and dedicating a major role for government and private media in spreading such culture; Capacity-building of those in charge of the upbringing and educational process of children, including parents, teachers, physicians, police officers, judiciary staff, social workers, psychiatrists and all those dealing with children in all sites; Activating principles of community participation and responsibility among all governmental authorities concerned, NGOs, media, private sector, professional and other specialists, with the particular participation of children in phases of planning, implementation and follow-up; Empowering children and raising their awareness of their rights and duties, and means of protecting themselves against any form of violence, while urging them to report any abuse or violence, and providing the appropriate mechanisms for that; Strengthening partnerships at the regional and national levels, in order to come up with a model for protecting children, based on prompt and early intervention for protecting children, who are subject to hazards, and enhancing them with the basic services that guarantee healthy growth and safe childhood.